Friday, February 26, 2016

He started out as a “nobody”: he was raised in a home that worshipped other gods (Judges 6: 25-27), in a nation that had gone away from the true God (Judges 6:1) and was experiencing dire economic and social circumstances (Judges 6: 2-6).

Could this be the story of Muslims today? For Gideon, God intervened in his life and spoke to him. The Lord changed his heart. He called him. And the reticent young man who lacked self-esteem became a four-star general and the commander in chief! The subsequent victory brought in its trail deliverance for the whole nation (read Judges 6, 7).

Prayer

We ask you, our God, glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give your church among Muslims leaders like Gideon: men and women who have faith in you as Gideon did, obey your call, receive your empowering, believe your promises, look for signs from you and act with courage.

Give church leaders spiritual wisdom and insight so they might grow in the knowledge of God.I pray that their spiritual eyes may be enlightened. Help them to know the hope to which you call them (Ephesians 1:18).

Hedge around them on every side: protect them and their families and all they have, and bless the work of their hands (Job 1:10).

Amen.

Promise

“The LORD is with you, mighty warrior. …Go with the strength you have, and save [your people]. I am sending you”(Judges 6:12, 14, SAB).

Friday, February 19, 2016

According to Islam, women by nature are crooked, prone to temptation and are themselves a means of temptation to men! Therefore, they should be watched carefully, cover their bodies when in public and not speak to strangers.

Consequently, Muslims believe that a woman should never leave her home or community alone. She should have an escort or a chaperone to keep an eye on her. That chaperone in Islam is called mahram. In a sense, a mahram protects a woman from herself!

Normally a mahram is a parent, sibling, son or any other male who is not eligible to marry the woman he protects.

This concept, like some other beliefs in Islam, speaks of a broken religious system that does not realize that the real problem is the root of sin in a person’s heart. The guardians of the system think they can control sin through outward restrictions. In the case of mahram, a male accompanies a woman to keep an eye on her!

Prayer

Lord God our Maker, you created us man and woman in your own image. You endowed us with great gifts. Yet, we all have fallen in sin. None of us, away from Christ, can claim righteousness. None of us is superior to others! We do not believe that women are more sinful than men.

I pray that many Muslims, both men and women, will come to you this week through Jesus our Savior and Redeemer. Help them realize that they are all sinners, all fall short of God’s glory (Romans 3:23), and it is only by your grace that we can have access to you.

Promise

Most blessed among women is Jael, the wife of Heber…. May she be blessed above all women who live in tents (Judges 5:24, NLT).

“Greetings [Mary], you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” Mary said, “From now on all generations will call me blessed…” (Luke 1:28, 46, 48, NIV).

Friday, February 12, 2016

The Quran, Islam’s holy book, is a collection of jumbled statements and stories in a random arrangement. Most of its stories are fractured and lack consistency. Subjects and themes are not connected.

So fractured are narratives in the Quran that only one story has a clear beginning, middle, and end: the story of Joseph. All the other stories pick up in the middle, or else they are never carried to their conclusion.^[1]

The Quran admits that Satan sometimes intervened and gave Muhammad “an inspiration.”^[2] It also states that Muhammad forgot some parts of it.^[3] Several chapters start with meaningless three-letter words such as alr, alm, etc. Even great quranic interpreters cannot find a meaning for such words.

In one place the Quran says that no changes to it occurred,^[4] and in another it says changes to it indeed took place.^[5]

Prayer

Great and wise God, you are holy. We magnify your name and worship your majesty. You are our God, Lord, King and Savior. Thank you for the truth of the Gospel and for the consistency of your Word.

I pray for the Muslims I know, for Muslims around me, and for Muslims I have met recently. They are guided by a book that is far from being your holy Word. Help them see and realize the incohesion and confusion in their book.

Reveal yourself to them. Show them Jesus in his compassion, sacrificial love and forgiveness. Let your Word penetrate their hearts. May they be convicted by your Holy Spirit to repent of the sin of rejecting your Son. May they believe in his redemptive power and kneel to him at the cross.

Help them grow in their knowledge of Christ. Anoint them and send them forth to announce the Good News to other Muslims.

In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Promise

“If you believe, you will see the glory of God” (John 11:40).

Footnotes

^[1] Nabeel Qureshi, Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus, Zondervan, 2014, p. 177.
^[2] Sura 22: 52-54; 53:20.
^[3] Sura 87:6-8; 18:24; 2:106.
^[4] Sura 10:64.
^[5] Sura 16:101-102.

Friday, February 5, 2016

This special edition of the Sharif Bible seeks to help Muslims who come to Christ become grounded in the Word. It contains articles, notes, illustrations, maps, word studies and many other study helps. It does the following:

Provides helpful cultural, historical and geographical information;

Presents homiletical notes that help preachers and teachers;

Challenges readers with applications and questions for a deeper life in Christ;

Answers the questions Muslims ask as they are exposed to God’s eternal Word.

Work on the Sharif Study Bible has been in progress for some time, and we hope it will be published soon.

Prayer

Lord God our Heavenly Father, throughout history you spoke many times through the prophets. Finally, you spoke to us by your holy Son Jesus Christ (Hebrews 1:1). We thank you.

Your Word is vital to our lives as believers. So we pray for the preparation of the Sharif Study Bible. Help all who work on it to be sensitive to your Spirit, handle correctly the Word of God, and declare the truth of the Gospel with integrity.

When this volume is published, may it help those who work with Muslims, empowering them to declare your truth with power, simplicity and clarity. May it be a tool to bring millions of Muslims to the Kingdom of our Savior. Help Muslim believers in Christ understand and value your Word and find life, joy and peace through it. Teach them how to share your Word with others—“Share gifts of food with people who have nothing prepared” (Nehemiah 8:10, NLT).

In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Promise

All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach the truth, to rebuke error, to correct wrong, and to guide to righteousness, so that a person who belongs to God will be prepared and equipped to do every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17, SAB).